Principal Financial Group Inc. Boosts Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group increased its PepsiCo stake by 2.3% in the first quarter, buying 39,222 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 1,728,927 shares worth about $268.5 million.
• PepsiCo’s latest earnings beat expectations slightly, with EPS of $2.20 and revenue of $24.18 billion, while the company reaffirmed its FY2026 guidance. It also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.48, implying a 4.4% yield.
• Despite some positive consumer demand trends, analysts and recent commentary point to pressure on PepsiCo’s turnaround from softer snack demand and cautious consumers, and several firms have trimmed price targets or kept a hold outlook.

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 2.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,728,927 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 39,222 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of PepsiCo worth $268,485,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management purchased a new position in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Swiss RE Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Networth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 2,857.1% during the 1st quarter. Networth Advisors LLC now owns 207 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 99.1% in the 1st quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. now owns 217 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company's stock.

PepsiCo News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo is still finding support from broader consumer resilience, as Bank of America said households are continuing to spend on discretionary items despite inflation worries, which could help demand for snacks and drinks. BofA Sees ‘Strong’ Consumer, Bucking Fears of Price Pressures
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo’s recent earnings still showed solid underlying results, with revenue and EPS both slightly ahead of expectations, and management reiterated its longer-term FY2026 guidance. PepsiCo earnings and stock data
• Neutral Sentiment: Jim Cramer said PepsiCo can do better, but the commentary mainly reinforces that the stock has become a debate about execution rather than a clear catalyst. Jim Cramer Believes PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) Can Do Better
• Neutral Sentiment: PepsiCo also outlined food-business plans and promoted product tie-ins like the Circle K partnership, but these developments appear incremental rather than stock-moving on their own. PepsiCo maps out food business plans
• Negative Sentiment: Recent reports say PepsiCo’s turnaround is stalling because Americans are rethinking snacking, and analysts pushed back on management’s North America growth strategy during the latest earnings call. PepsiCo's turnaround stutters as Americans rethink snacking Where Analysts Pushed Back On PEP Stock's Latest Earnings Call
• Negative Sentiment: Management also warned about pressures from gas prices and softer consumer spending, reinforcing concerns that shoppers may trade down or cut back on snack purchases. PepsiCo CEO warns on gas prices, consumer spending

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $173.00 to $164.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. UBS Group set a $159.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 18th. Piper Sandler set a $176.00 target price on PepsiCo in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on PepsiCo from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $157.70.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PEP opened at $135.45 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $144.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $151.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $184.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.36. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $133.75 and a 52 week high of $171.48.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 9th. The company reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $24.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.95 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.78% and a return on equity of 54.63%. PepsiCo's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.92 earnings per share. PepsiCo has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.550-8.710 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a $1.48 dividend. This represents a $5.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.4%. This is a boost from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.59%.

PepsiCo Profile

PepsiCo, Inc NASDAQ: PEP is a multinational food and beverage company headquartered in Purchase, New York. The company develops, manufactures, markets and sells a broad portfolio of branded food and beverage products, including carbonated and noncarbonated soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready-to-drink teas and coffees, salty snacks, cereals, and other convenient foods. Its leading consumer brands include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Tropicana, Quaker, Lay's, Doritos and Cheetos, among others.

Formed through the 1965 merger of Pepsi-Cola and Frito-Lay, PepsiCo has grown into a global business with integrated manufacturing, distribution and marketing operations.

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